Wilfred Bion was an influential British psychoanalyst in the mid 1900s. His observations about the role of group dynamics are set out in his book Experiences in Groups (Routledge, 1991).Bion identified reoccurring emotional states that groups adopt,which he labeled as assumptions. Although dedicated project teams are rare in today’s work environment, even temporary, highly matrixed project teams adopt similar emotions that help or hinder project success.One of the things that he found was that people hold certain beliefs based on what he called “common ground.” Whether it is our family, our work teams, or even our friends, we adopt certain beliefs that influence our choices, especially during a project. If we think that something is going to pull us off this ground, or violate these beliefs, we will fight it in very predictable ways. Use Sidebar 6.2 to think about groups that you are part of and how they influence your beliefs.A project team is at its best when everyone is working on what they are supposed to be doing. But that can’t happen forever. At some point in the project an issue arises that everyone is afraid to deal with. Together, the team will silently agree to not talk about this issue— Continue Reading...